


How can I hear you?

by RougueShadowWolf



Series: 15 Minutes [210]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Good Friend Scott McCall (Teen Wolf), Implied/Referenced Character Death, M/M, Mute Stiles Stilinski, Past Character Death, Peter Needs a Hug, Scott is a Good Friend, Soulmates, Temporary Character Death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-16
Updated: 2019-09-16
Packaged: 2020-10-20 00:57:43
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,737
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20666678
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RougueShadowWolf/pseuds/RougueShadowWolf
Summary: There’s a great deal of many things Derek had noticed about Stiles, and yet the one thing he should’ve noticed had escaped him at least for now.





	How can I hear you?

**Author's Note:**

> I thought I heard someone sneaking about. Come, come, no need to hide. You are welcome here.
> 
> Now if you are one who questions what is this 15Minutes series let me tell you, while if you are familiar with this series please find your way over to A SLIGHT CHANGE. 15Minutes is a series of stories written as small payment to 6 of my friends, and each story is written by me within the timeframe of 15Minutes, hence the uninspiring name of the series, once the time is up the writing stops, those are the rules. The poor excuse of time ensures bad grammar is to be found here, as are typos, and the stories themselves are not great works of art, and so I feel the need to advice you to leave now if you cannot handle any of the issues this story is promised to have. However, if you are still willing to risk your sanity, follow me down to A SLIGHT CHANGE. 
> 
> A SLIGHT CHANGE is at play today, there’s a theme to be followed such as Love, but fear not ThankTheTreesAndTheBees still has the power to make demands such as wanting mute Stiles who is Derek’s mate, now how will Derek know Stiles is his mate? Well, by some mysterious magical way that Derek isn’t aware of but Peter.

Derek is in the middle of yet another argument with Stiles, trying his best to convince the younger male and everyone else that _his_ plan was better than the one Stiles had concocted, when he suddenly noticed something he’d missed since his and Stiles’ paths crossed.

His heart stutter as he attempted to understand, or rather attempts to argue against what he’d just noticed. His well-rehearsed argument that Derek had been prepared to make is suddenly completely lost and forgotten, leaving him silent and just standing there gawking at the human who seemed to know just the way to push his buttons. Stiles had a gift when it came to testing his patience on a daily basis, and yet, Stiles was also the one person he trusted the most.

_`What? What are you looking at? ´_ Stiles asks then, sounding annoyed and defensive, his hands moving in a way that alone told Derek that the younger male was more than just a little bit irritated with him, which was reasonable since they’d been arguing for nearly an hour.

`Stiles asks you, ´ Scott starts, as he always does, ` What are you looking at? ´

Derek had, until now, always found Scott parroting Stiles bloody annoying, but at the moment this strange habit of Scott was slowly beginning to make sense. 

Ignoring Scott, his attention completely focused on the human standing before him looking mighty pissed but also uncomfortable, Derek swallows down the lump in his throat before managing somewhat to voice the thought in his head.

`You – you don’t speak. ´

The horrified gasp from Scott seems to echo loudly in the loft, and soon an almost intense silence surrounds him while all eyes were on Derek suddenly, the attention making Derek feel uncomfortable. The silence really wasn’t a pleasant one and it only served to make him feel even more uncomfortable where he stood. There was almost something hostile about the unforgiving silence. This was not the sort of silence Derek usually wished for when the pack gathered at his loft, but then again, the sort of silence that had now engulfed the loft wasn’t important, there were greater things to worry about than something as unimportant as silence.

Honestly, Derek doesn’t know how exactly he’d been able to be around Stiles for over a year now, almost two-years in forty-two days, and not notice that Stiles’ mouth rarely moved with the sentences he could hear the younger male say. He should’ve noticed sooner that Stiles’ lips hardly ever moved while Derek still heard him speak, speak none-stop.

Then again, Derek did his best not to focus his attention on Stiles’ lips, since they were surprisingly distracting to him most days.

`You don’t speak. ´ Derek repeats like the idiot Stiles had just a few minutes claimed him to be, sure, Stiles had accused him of being a suicidal idiot due to his plan.

Stiles positively bristles at him then, but he’s feeling far too baffled and a little bit humiliated to have a reaction to Stiles reaction, a rare thing that since usually anything Stiles did drew a reaction from.

`You don’t actually talk, ´ Derek continues, unable to stop now for some reason, `You don’t speak – with your voice. ´

Stiles looks absolutely unimpressed with him, a look Derek is given by Stiles at least a couple of times a week, mostly when Derek failed to be the alpha to his betas that Stiles thought he should strive to be, and more often than not he could admit that he deserved this particular look from Stiles; Derek wouldn’t admit to Stiles, or anyone, that he was working on being a better alpha just so that he could avoid this particular look from Stiles.

Derek doesn’t know when exactly Stiles’ opinion of him began to matter to him as much at it now did, but Derek and his wolf both cared a great deal mote about Stiles’ opinion of them than what they did when it came to everyone else; then again, Stiles wasn’t just one of the smartest people in the pack, but he was also the only one willing to lend a hand and mind, not to mention his time, to help Derek and the pack.

`_Are you shitting with me? ´ _Stiles asks after the uncomfortably long silence, hands and fingers move quickly with an air of lividness that wasn’t normal for the teen, but it isn’t the way Stiles’ hands are working that draws Derek’s attention it’s the way Stiles’ lips are sealed tightly in anger. The cold hard gaze that he can find in Stiles’ eyes is one that chills Derek to the bone, and if Derek didn’t know better he’d swear on his own life that Stiles wasn’t just an ordinary human but something more, which was a thought that had started sneak into his head more and more often. There’s a hardness now to Stiles face that, one that Derek thinks shows how Stiles’ will look like in a couple of years, the way Stiles’ jaw is set and the way Stiles’ lips are barely holding back a snarl, makes it clear that Stiles is more than just a little bit angry with him, this was the one expression that Derek really hated seeing on Stiles’ face, especially when he was the cause of Stiles’ it; if Derek was being honest, he did rather enjoyed seeing Stiles direct this look of ultimate anger when it was directed at his betas and Peter, or any threat that came knocking, but he absolutely hated when he was the cause of this level of anger. 

Derek barely notices the way Scott once again parrots Stiles, although he does clean-up the sentences spoken a smidge.

_` Of course, I don’t talk with my voice, ´ _Stiles continues, his voice growing louder and angrier with each word spoken, or rather each word Derek hears him speak, _` You colossal prick, ´ _and yeah, Derek probably deserved being called a few names right about now,_ `because I fucking can’t talk! ´_

Again, Scott does his best to repeat what his best friend was saying, but it’s clear Stiles is either going too fast for Scott or he is struggling with some of the words Stiles had been using.

`He’s mute, of course he doesn’t talk dumbass. ´ Erica snarled from where she was seated next to Boyd, her fondness for Stiles still strong even though her relationship with Boyd was growing into something that Derek was certain would last until death did them part. These days Erica had Stiles’ back more than Scott, and so her snapping at him isn’t new. 

`Not cool dude. ´ Scott says from where he’s standing next to Stiles, the air of disapproval replaced quickly enough to something like hurt as he goes on to say, `You shouldn’t make fun of him just because you don’t like his plan. ´

There are various mumbled words of agreements from the rest of the pack, even Jackson seemed to think Derek had gone too far, and Jackson didn’t even like Stiles and yet here he was calling Derek a proper douchebag.

`_Why the Hell is he being such a – a Harris today?_ ´ Stiles asks Scott, the look of anger beginning to crumble while a sense of hurt begins to crawl into its place; and if the previous expression wasn’t one Derek didn’t like, well, seeing Stiles feeling hurt and dare Derek say it, betrayed, that was even worse.

For once Scott doesn’t repeat, no, Derek realizes now that Scott has been translating for Stiles. Scott has been Stiles’ means with which to communicate with those who didn’t know ASL.

_`Why? Why did he have to go there? What the hell did I do? ´_ Stiles asks Scott while unaware that Derek could hear him clearly, he hears the way Stiles’ voice cracks and breaks with sadness and hurt, and it stabs Derek right in the heart.

`You did nothing wrong. ´ Scott tells his best friend, pulling him into a hug, `He’s just being an asshole, dude. ´

`I’m sorry, ´ Derek says, and goddam it, Derek isn’t the only one who is surprised by his hastily voiced apology, one that was genuine in nature. Derek ignores the strange way his apology silenced everyone, or the way everyone is looking at him now, he ignores the wide-eyed surprised look on Scott’s face. Derek can’t afford to focus on anything but making sure the useful human that he trusted, didn’t find this to be the moment to turn his back on Derek, because if he lost Stiles then he would surely make a massive mess of being an alpha.

Breaking apart, Stiles doesn’t turn around to face him, or even look at him but Derek can tell by just the way Stiles’ shoulders are set, and the way he’s looking down at his hands that the kid doesn’t believe him.

`I’m not trying to be an asshole. I swear to you, I’m not. ´ Derek continues, desperate to make things right and moving to close the distance between him and the one he’d more than once thought would make an excellent Emissary for his pack, he could trust Stiles a whole lot more than he trusted Deaton.

The thought that Stiles might think he was someone who’d make fun of someone’s disability, that made Derek feel sick, since the last thing he wanted was for Stiles to think he was that sort of a person. 

`I just – I didn’t know, alright, I didn’t know you’re – that you’re mute. ´ Derek goes on to say, desperate to make sure that Stiles didn’t think he’d set-out to hurt him, but because he’s not great at communicating, a fact Stiles never allows him to forget, it seems what he says does more harm than good.

The sharp turn Stiles makes is not one he’d been expecting, especially since it didn’t cause Stiles to fall on his ass, the look the furious human shoots at him is so full of anger and hurt, there are even angry tears waiting to spill from those now whiskey coloured eyes.

Derek is tempted to look down at the floor, just to make sure his heart didn’t just exit his body at that single look directed at him.

Before Stiles has a chance to say, or sign really, anything in response, Erica gets up an off of the small couch which she and Stiles’ had dragged into the loft without Derek permission. Until Derek finally surrendered and began to furnish the loft, these random pieces of furniture started appearing, and each one dragged to the loft by Stiles; of course, Derek knew the game Stiles’ had been playing, and hated caving in to it eventually, but the grotesque armchair really did force Derek to take charge of making the loft into somewhat of a home for him and Isaac.

Then there were the not so subtle hint Stiles sent on repairing certain things in the loft, having a handyman appear at his door eight in the morning on a dreary Monday was most definitely not appreciated, and neither were the seven-more times it happened after he’d chased the men out; sure, it did push him to renovate certain areas of the loft, such as having fully functioning bathrooms and kitchen.

Sure, someone else might want to get rid of a guy like Stiles, but Derek really had no desire to lose the only person who kept pushing him to be better.

`Like the Hell you didn’t notice, ´ Erica snarls then, her eyes glowing yellow, snapping Derek out of his musing of Stiles past actions to helping him be better.

Erica moves to stand next to Stiles, her shoulder brushing against his, Derek hasn’t missed how Erica is always touching Stiles, which shouldn’t bother Derek as much as it sometimes does.

`Come on, Derek, ´ the way the female-werewolf said his name, well, it was anything but friendly, `You_ didn’t_ think he was just using sign-language for the fun of it, while never speaking one goddamn word. ´ Erica growls at him, and Derek can’t help but flinch a little at that because the way she says it makes him sound like the biggest jerk on the planet and beyond.

`I didn’t! ´ Derek barks back defensively, his gaze moving back and forth between Erica and Stiles, Derek might glare at Erica but he feels like he might be pleading with his eyes for Stiles to believe him, `I didn’t know! I didn’t even notice he was – he was doing that. ´ and here he stupid has to point at Stiles now moving hands.

And goddamn it, now it made sense to Derek why Stiles would always have a panic when someone restrained him in a way that made it impossible for him to use his hand, even just while playfighting with Erica would result in him losing it when she’d playfully pinned his hands down or twisted his arms behind his back; not to mention the state he’d found Stiles in when a group of hunters kidnapped him, tied him to a chair, and yeah, now that Derek thinks back to it he should’ve found it strange the hunters hadn’t bothered to cover Stiles’ mouth with something to keep him unable to scream for help.

Stiles turns just enough that Scott can see him sign the words Derek so clearly hears Stiles say, `_I’m done with this Scott. I’m going home. ´ _and now Derek feels panic swell-up in the pit of his stomach, there’s just something about Stiles’ voice that makes him think this might be the last time he’ll be in the same room as the stupidly, no, recklessly brave human.

_`Even Jackson has never been this much of a dick to me, well, not since preschool._ ´

`Don’t go. Please, don’t go. ´ Derek pleads without shame or care, going as far as to reaching out to grab one of Stiles’ hands, holding it gently in his own without really thinking. The glare directed at him, accompanied by grows he gets from Erica and Scott is enough to cause him to let go of the human.

As always after touching Stiles, he finds it difficult to not try and touch him again, which once again terrifies him.

`I wasn’t aware that you knew sign-language, nephew. ´ Peter says from the armchair Stiles had brought to the loft but a weak prior, a seat now claimed by Peter as his for good reason as it was comfortable in every possible way and with a pleasant appearance to it too. There’s something peculiar about his Peter’s voice which draws Derek’s attention towards his uncle, something almost bitter and angry, while in those cold blue-eyes he could see that Peter knew something which wasn’t new.

`I don’t. ´ Derek is quick to say, because he doesn’t, he doesn’t know one damn thing about sign language. Not even to save his life would he be able to mimic a single sign. He’d never felt the need to learn sign language, and yet now faced with it that lack of knowledge about it, he really was made to feel rather impotent as Stiles’ alpha.

Stiles rolls his eyes at that, and Derek hears the Sheriff’s kid say, `_Oh come on. Lying much? _´

`I’m not lying. I’m not. ´ Derek is quick to defend himself, desperate to not be banished into the outskirts of Stiles’ circle of friends, he didn’t want to end-up in the same position Jackson had been in not too long ago.

Stiles turns sharply to face him, brown eyes hard with bitter anger, and the very expressive hands raised and ready to speak for Stiles, who was already screaming at him, _`Bullshit! ´_ but then Stiles’ pales and his hands drop and a look of pure shock washes over his now unnervingly pale face.

`Stiles? ´ Derek asks with genuine concern since he’s never seen Stiles go this pale without him bleeding out, and even while sleeping Stiles had never been this unmoving.

_`What the fuck? How’d you do that? ´_ Stiles snaps at him as the shock of whatever wears off, again Derek hears him, but he also understands the reason why Stiles moves his hands and fingers the way he does, and now those movements don’t appear all that ridiculous to him.

Derek makes a promise to himself then and there that he was going to learn sign language, hell, he’d force everyone in the pack to learn it, it could prove useful when being silent was the best form of action to staying hidden and alive.

`What? What did he do? ´ Scott asks, clearly alarmed by the way Stiles was now signing furiously at Derek.

`I don’t know. I just… ´ Derek starts, his heart racing with a touch of panic because this is such a messed-up situation, and he’s well aware that he may have just pushed Stiles a little bit too far tonight.

` Stiles, I just hear you. Alright. I just do. ´not a soul, not even Stiles appears to believe him, there are snorts and laughter from a few of his packmates.

`_You hear me?_ ´ Stiles asks venomously, eyes glaring at him like Derek had just called his dead mother the town whore, `_You hear me?!_ ´ and Scott goddamn it, just has to repeat everything Stiles says, but again without the flare that Stiles possessed.

The anger that burns brightly in the most perplexing human Derek had the fortune of knowing, well, he didn’t really know much about Stiles, that was clear now more than ever.

`You’re such a liar. ´ Stiles says then, not moving his hands at all, only glaring at Derek in a way that feels like a challenge.

`Don’t you dare call me a liar just because you don’t believe me. ´ Derek bites back, angry that Stiles wouldn’t believe him, since he’d thought Stiles would know him better than this.

Stiles stops breathing for a second here, eyes wide with confusion as they looked down at his hand as if questioning whether or not he’d moved them at all as he called Derek a liar.

`Interesting. ´ Peter says in that unnerving sort of way that tells Derek that something is about to happen, and he turns his attention away from Stiles, watching instead his uncle like one would a predator that was ready to make the move on you or someone you cared about.

Peter moves to stand behind Stiles, causing Derek to growl at him, which only earned him a sharp grin from his uncle. Stiles turns just enough so that he could give the older werewolf a glare that not for the first-time made Derek think that if Stiles had been a werewolf, then Stiles’ would’ve been an alpha, there’s just something about the way Stiles stands and squares his shoulders while facing threats to his life or the pack, and then there was they Stiles knew how to handle people and care for those who needed that tender touch that Derek continued to struggle with. 

The words of Peter had said not too long ago ringing in Derek’s ears as he carefully watches the interaction between Stiles and his uncle, _`You should offer the bite to Stiles. He’d make a spectacular wolf, nephew. Possibly even a better one than you. ´_

`_Interesting?_ _What the fuck is interesting?_ ´ Stiles asks, Derek hears Stiles ask long before his hands spell-out the questions made.

Again, Scott serves to translate the now slow and clear movements of Stiles’ hands and fingers.

`What’s interesting? ´ Isaac enquires curiously from where he was now standing devouring the soup Stiles had made for his dad, and Derek is very much tempted to tell his beta to put down the soup because it wasn’t meant for him but Stiles father, but the soup just didn’t seem all that important at that moment; and Stiles’ honestly should’ve known better than to bring any food around the pack, and he should know not to make any food at the loft unless he wanted what he’d made to be devoured in a blink of an eye.

Peter leans in closer to Stiles’ left ear then, and whispers something in his ear, and he whispers so softly that Derek can’t really make out the words while Isaac keeps slurping away at the soup, and Erica with Scott are growling at Peter. Whatever Peter whispered into Stiles’ ear is enough tp cause the human to pull away from Peter, and to shriek in horror and outrage, `_Your fucking zombie dick isn’t getting anywhere near my ass! ´ _Stiles doesn’t sign this part, instead he gives Peter a hard slap across the face. 

Something snaps in Derek at hearing what Peter had said, or rather the wolf in him has had absolutely enough of their uncle and the disgusting proposition Peter had made to Stiles. They feel insulted on Stiles’ behalf, since Stiles deserved so much better than just receiving such a crude offer.

Derek closes the distance between him and his uncle in the blink of an eye, fangs and claws at the ready.

Peter is quick to create distance between him and Stiles, but it still isn’t enough to calm Derek or his wolf down.

`Derek, nephew, dear, ´ Peter stars, raising both his hands in show of not being a threat to him or Stiles, and yet Derek doesn’t think for a second he can trust Peter, `Listen. I just had to try something. ´

`Like what? ´ Derek snarls viciously, `Offering to molest someone who isn’t interested in you? ´

`Well, now that you put it like that, I should’ve probably said something else. ´ Peter replies, but there’s a level of amusement there that Derek doesn’t appreciate one bit.

`I’m not going to do anything to your true mate, Derek. I may be broken and even a little bit twisted, but I’d never do that. ´ hearing Peter refer to Stiles as his true mate causes Derek to pause, to freeze in his tracks, the shock pulling back the shift enough for the red-eyes, the sharp claws and fangs disappearing.

`What? What did you just say? ´ Derek asks, feeling very much like his world just tilted in some significant way. He swears the wolf in him is having some sort of Ahaa-moment the human side of him hasn’t yet managed to reach. 

`_Mate? True Mate? What the fuck is he talking about?!_ ´ Stiles is positively shrieking from where he is standing behind both Scott and Erica, and Derek can’t be sure if they are trying to protect Stiles from him or Peter, or both, possibly even trying to protect Stiles from himself.

`There’s – there’s no such thing as a true mate. ´ Derek growls then at Peter who looks suddenly equally annoyed as he does disappointed, `That’s just a myth. A fairy tale, told to kids. It’s nothing more than that. ´

Peter glares at him then, but there’s something there that he can easily recognize as grief unhealed, a sorrow that continued to fester day in and day out.

`Not a myth. ´ Peter bites back, defensive and unwilling to backdown now.

`Rare, for sure. But not a myth, nephew. ´ Peter continues, now moving towards him and Derek swears Peter looks ready to fight him on this matter, and as his uncle continues to speak there’s such bitterness in his voice that Derek can’t help but take a step-back from his uncle.

`True mates are a very real thing. ´

`_Is someone going to fucking tell me what the fuck is a true mate?! _´ Derek hears Stiles scream in frustration,_ ` Or do I have to google this shit too?!_ ´

Keeping a watchful eye on his uncle, Derek feels compelled to respond to Stiles question, as has become a thing between them too. Stiles could call him in the middle of the night these days, and ask him a question, and Derek would try and answer it before telling Stiles sharply to go to bed.

To say that things had changed between them was a mild-way of describing what had happened between them after Stiles’ drowned, the old-looney hunter had been convinced Stiles was a witch and hogtied Stiles before throwing him into the small but surprisingly deep lake in woods.

`There are stories about werewolves, born werewolves, that are blessed by the moon with a mate, ´ Derek goes on to say, doing his best not to think back to that dreadful moment they’d seen the old-man dump Stiles’ bound body into the water, not that Derek hadn’t immediately even with his fresh fear of drowning screaming at the back of his mind to not go into the water started towards the spot Stiles’ body vanished beneath the icy-water.

`A mate created just for them, one that will have a special connection to them. ´ Derek grits out, trying so hard not to think about how he’d struggled to find Stiles’ sunken body, and the relief he’d momentarily felt as his hands found the unmoving form of Stiles.

A peculiar sound leaves Stiles then, and it snaps Derek’s attention back to the human all the while knowing he was giving Peter the perfect chance to slit his throat by doing this.

`Tell you what? Tell you what dude? ´ Scott asks, looking both concerned by the sudden stillness of his best friend, a stillness that had fallen on his friend after Derek’s response.

`Not just stories Derek. ´ his uncle goes on to say, voice so full of bitterness that Derek didn’t know what to make of it, `I had one. ´ this statement, confession, came out sharp and angry, drawing Derek’s attention back to his uncle, who stood before him with his eyes closed and face twisted in the sort of pain no medication or treatment could mend.

`Oh God how shy she was. ´ a sad smile now pulls at Peter’s lips, affection and longing most deep found in his whispered voice, and Derek knows immediately who it was his uncle was speaking of. Until now Peter hadn’t, not once, mentioned his wife, the wife he’d lost in the very fire that Peter had survived somehow.

Before speaking again, Peter sets his trembling hand against his own chest, rubbing the spot above his heart as if trying to sooth an ache there.

`She was incredibly shy, so shy she’d never speak in class even if she had an excellent argument or a point to make. Not even when she had a question she needed and answer too, she still didn’t dare to speak. Yet, I could hear her as clear as I’m sure you can hear young Stiles. ´ Opening his eyes Peter turns an almost pitying gaze towards Stiles, a sorrowful drawn now on his once smirking face.

`Surely Stiles, you had to have noticed that Derek heard more than what you signed? You’re a smart boy,_ surely_, you’ve noticed something wasn’t right? Maybe while you two were paralyzed at the Sheriff’s station? ´

Stiles heart skips a beat, and there’s a gasp of a breath from Stiles, and as Derek to look at the boy his uncle claims is his true mate, Derek finds Stiles wide-eyed, the internal freak-out so very much evident in his gaze as well as the string of, `_Oh my God. Oh my God._ ´ that Derek can hear coming from Stiles, sure there’s a whole lot of other things Stiles is thinking, but it’s all an incoherent jumble.

An almost manic laughter leaves Peter then, and it appears to startle not only Derek but Stiles’ too.

`Oh Derek, ´ Peter says as his laughter dies down, a couple maddening chuckles here and there can be heard as Peter continues to speak, his voice a peculiar mixture of cruel delight and deep-rooted sorrow.

`You’d better wish, my dear nephew, that the day never comes when you feel the slow burning death of your mate. If you will, then it will drive you mad. And that pain will never truly leave you, no matter the years that pass. It will never leave you alone. Never. ´

Derek swallows the lump in his throat, his eyes focused on Stiles now.

Derek isn’t brave enough to tell his uncle that he’s already experienced feeling Stiles’ die, but it wasn’t by fire, but rather by cold and dark water. He feels sick when realizing that the screams he’d heard as he swam towards the spot where Stiles’ body had disappeared into the cold water, weren’t just the creation of a panicked mind but rather Stiles’ actual screams of distress and fear.

**Author's Note:**

> Stiles can't hear Derek the way Derek hears him, and will not until their bond is complete.


End file.
